gyro wrote:So the new burrs arrived today. Got them installed and churned through 2 pounds of coffee. Visually the burrs were smoother looking, but still quite rough in places. Last go on the original burrs (after 10+ pounds) I was doing a double in 8.5 secs and seemed very inconsistent and the grind felt coarse. It started the same today, but within a couple of pounds it has settled considerably and is doing a 17 gram double in 6.5 secs with reasonable consistency. The grind felt more like I am used to from the Mini E.

There are still little coffee cubes coming out, but they are much less dense than before, and a simple finger sweep makes them disintegrate nicely with no WDT, no channeling.

Still seems slower than it should be, but perhaps as it seasons a bit more it will get a bit quicker. The grind is much better than the last set already.

Cheers, Chris

Well I've had around 5 pounds through the machine now, and its definitely speeding up and becoming more consistent. Its down to 5.5 secs now for a double. Mazzer are apparently starting their own production line for conical burrs, the ones I received are from their external supplier however.

I own a set of Robur burrs and when the showed up I was appalled at the condition of the edges. A really good close up picture sent to Mazzer got back an immediate request for my address and a promise of 2 sets of replacement burrs. After discovering my lack of a Robur S/N they changed their mind and told me to take a hike. The first response makes me believe they are aware of a problem with their supplier.

Ira

I own a set of Robur burrs and when they showed up I was appalled at the condition of the edges. A really good close up picture sent to Mazzer got back an immediate request for my address and a promise of 2 sets of replacement burrs. After discovering my lack of a Robur S/N they changed their mind and told me to take a hike. The first response makes me believe they are aware of a problem with their supplier.

Ira

gyro wrote:Well I've had around 5 pounds through the machine now, and its definitely speeding up and becoming more consistent. Its down to 5.5 secs now for a double. Mazzer are apparently starting their own production line for conical burrs, the ones I received are from their external supplier however.

I have 2.8sec for a 14g double,with Nino.3.8sec,for 19g.

Interesting stuff. Theodore, were those timings consistent from the start, or has the grinder increased it throughput, and hence decreased it grinding times, since you've had it? My burrs are now about 5 secs for 17 grams, a big reduction from 8.5 secs to begin with.

OK, time for a quick update. Burrs no 1. were definitely a dud set. Burrs no. 2 provided by retailer (also Mazzer OEM, but 'outsourced' production) were OK. They started off slowly and were obviously in the process of bedding in. I think after 15lbs or so, they would have been acceptable. To look at, they were still shoddy, but nowhere near like set No 1.

So I emailed Mazzer with the whole story, and they kindly offered to send a new set from their new CONICAL burr production line. Apparently they have just started this. Anyway, the burrs arrived today and the difference was immediately noticeable.

The entire finish was different, the quality of the burrs was immediately obvious, and surprisingly a bit of a different cut to the burrs was easy to spot in the fine grinding zone.

New burrs on the left, originals on the right.



So I am pleased I pressed this. I was very disappointed originally, but this last set of burrs is what I believe it should have been all the time. Grinding times are in line with what I expected (4 secs for 17.5g) after only putting 2 lbs through them. I have no doubt some of the previous outsourced burrs were absolutely fine, but the QC must not have been very good and I must have been unlucky.

Cheers, Chris

Indeed, the new burrs have a more vertical angle to the cuts; I'd imagine that means it makes a more aggressive cut (which would make it grind faster). Probably ups the torque requirement, but I imagine the Robur is up to it. Thanks for following up...

Great to hear it finally worked out for you. What is the grind and taste comparison to the two sets of burrs?

Thanks, me too!

To be honest, all I have done is run through a couple of pounds of old beans. Pours looked excellent, but tasted awful, which was what I expected with stale bulk beans. The wastage factor on it for my level of usage is too much so its basically going to lie idle for a couple of years until the cafe eventuates. I'm now using the Nino daily and its excellent, although still settling down. I will say though, that the pours from the Robur-E (with the newest burrs, and also the previous set) were picture perfect in terms of central cone and tiger striping even with the old beans. Better 'looking' even than what I am currently getting from the Nino with good fresh beans. Low wastage factor on the Nino is just superb though.

I occasionally grind a few pounds of beans for friends, once I've got the new Robur burrs over 10lbs or so, I'll have a taste test between the two (robur/nino). No way my brain can recall the difference in the two later sets of Mazzer burrs without them operating next to each other, even then I doubt it. The main point I am pleased about is the obvious improvement in the quality of the manufacture of the burrs, which I believe has a direct relationship with a reduction in time required for them to be seasoned/worn in.

Cheers, Chris

It took me 7 KG to season the burrs on my Robur and I'd like to extend the topic with the following question:

Are we being a little too precious about clumps from a Robur-E?

I was about to make a device to break the clumps that form by being extruded through the exit chute on my Robur. Then I thought to myself, "Why do I feel the clumps are a problem in the first instance?".

The clumps from my Robur when tamped or even gently touched break up. I can imagine more solid clumps being a problem but any clumps from my Robur are not dense enough to make me think they will stay clumped inside the puck once tamped.

What do you think?